FOOD HYGIENE AND SAFETY

Food Safety and Hygiene in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are the responsibility of the Food Standards Agency while in Scotland they are the responsibility of Food Standards Scotland. As a result, rules are different in the different administrations and producers should check the situation in their area with the relevant authority.

As a food business, even just selling vegetables, you’ll need to contact your local authority and register with the Environmental Health department. Make sure you start your registration at least 28 days before you intend to start trading. Registration of your food business is free and can’t be refused. Follow this link for more information

Once you’ve registered, they’ll then advise you on the rules and regulations that you must follow, which will depend on the types of food you will be selling. As well as explaining the regulations that apply, the environmental health department will recommend you take common sense steps to maintain food hygiene.

Food businesses that make, prepare or handle meat, fish, egg or dairy products must have strict food hygiene procedures that everyone follows to reduce the risk of contamination with bacteria. You may need to be approved (rather than simply registered) if your business supplies mainly trade customers rather than directly to the public, and you may also need to register with the Food Standards Agency (FSA) rather than just your local environmental health department. It is advisable to discuss this with your Local Authority.

There are some exemptions to this, for example if your business supplies products of animal origin to other businesses (including caterers) on a marginalised, localised and restricted basis.

As part of the registration or approval process, food and drink producers must submit a written food safety management system, based on ‘hazard analysis critical control point’ (HACCP) principles. Go to https://myhaccp.food.gov.uk/ to access an online tool provided by the Food Standards Agency to help small food manufacturers develop a system based on HACCP principles.

Once registered, you may be inspected by your local authority. Preparing thoroughly for your inspection means your business has the best chance of getting a top rating in the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme.

As all food businesses are slightly different, it can be confusing as to what is needed to comply with Food Safety Law. A good starting point is to follow the advice on the Food Standards Agency website. https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/setting-up-a-food-business

The Food Standards Agency provides a number of free specific training courses for businesses covering allergens, traceability, labelling, vacuum packing and root cause analysis. They can be accessed here:

The Environmental Health department will ask that you have (not exhaustive):
 * 1) A Food Safety Management System based on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) procedures. There are a number of ways of achieving this and it will depend on the size and nature of your business. Essentially this is a document that lays out how you ensure the food you produce is safe to eat. It is supported by your records, such as temperature, cleaning or training records. The myHACCP site can help you develop a HACCP Plan.
 * 2) The relevant training in food safety and hygiene. The type of food safety training will depend on the type of business you operate. Level 2 food hygiene training is a good starting point for most food business operators, however if you only sell low risk products such as fruit and vegetables, it may not be appropriate. Your Environmental Health department will be able to advise you. The type of training required should be commensurate with the type of food business. Induction training should be given to all new staff and should always cover the basics of food hygiene. There are a number of different training providers out there. Check that they are accredited to a recognised awarding body. Some local authorities run courses themselves, which can be useful if you want help with setting up your business, too.
 * 3) Premises will need to ensure that they have enough clean and pest-free space to carry out tasks hygienically; access to toilets and changing facilities for staff to change their clothes (if applicable); separate sinks for hand-washing and washing produce (if applicable); adequate ventilation, lighting and drainage; food storage and transportation which prevents contamination and maintains necessary temperatures; and where relevant, frozen and/or chilled storage.
 * 4) Food labels on pre-packed food which list additives in the ingredient list and declare whether any of the 14 allergens are present in food. To keep your food allergic customers safe, you must follow the allergen information rules by providing accurate allergen information and handling and managing food allergens adequately in the kitchen.
 * 5) A log to show where you buy and supply your food or food ingredients to and from.

Based on their assessment of your premises, record-keeping and processes, an Environmental Health Food Safety Officer will calculate the score of your premises from 25 (very poor) to 0 (perfect) using the Food Law Code of Practice. Scores are finalised by adding together the points scored in each of the three categories (hygiene, structural, and management compliance) and making sure there is no significant failing in any category.

The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme is run by the Food Standards Agency. It’s government led and operates in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. It’s dedicated to assessing the hygiene levels of restaurants, takeaways, food shops, and cafés. And it’s all about making sure food in the UK is safe to consume. Scotland has a similar system called the Food Hygiene Information Scheme.

In England, it’s not a legal requirement to display your food hygiene rating or certificate, but the Food Standards Agency encourage all businesses to display it. In Wales and Northern Ireland, it is a legal requirement that businesses display their certificates in a prominent place like the front door or in a window.

Sustain has a page of advice on food hygiene and a free checklist for volunteers handling food, Essentials of Food Hygiene: https://www.sustainweb.org/foodcoopstoolkit/foodhygiene/ https://www.sustainweb.org/images/sustain2/Essentials%20of%20food%20hygiene.doc

The CSA Network has a guide, Rules and Regulations, which covers Environmental Health: https://communitysupportedagriculture.org.uk/resource/rules-and-regulations/